cleaning humidifier

[ciounoi]

Hello all,

I have a Philips Respironics REMstar Heated Humidifier which I have used successfully for almost three years with nary an issue. I'm the type who doesn't clean the tank too often and it's always worked out well for me. Today, however, I was cleaning out my tank with soap and water and found light pink scum in the bottom and sides of the tank. How can I clean this out? I wasn't sure if I could take the bottom off the tank and don't want to ruin it.

Thanks,
ciounoi

[nanwilson]

Vinegar and water mix....1 part of vinegar to 3 of water.. allow to sit and soak for an hour then rinse.

[ameriken]

If you have the pink film, that is some kind of mold. I did a forum search once on the pink film and found dozens of posts on it, so it seems like it's not uncommon. I'm lazy when it comes to cleaning my equipment, but the last thing I want I to be inhaling mold, so I do good vinegar soak no less than once every 3 or 4 weeks using a 1:2 or 1:3 vinegar:water solution.

I also use distilled water every night, as well as when I am cleaning the tank. Non-distilled water could contain nutrients needed for something to grow, so I avoid tap or other undistilled water as much as I can.

[Pugsy]

Vinegar solution works well as Nan has suggested.

Also I think Polident tablet. Let it do it thing, slosh it around a lot and rinse out really well with hot water.

[archangle]

1) You mention "Philips Respironics." Does your humidifier/machine actually say "Philips" or just "Respironics?"

Does it look like this?



That would be listed as PR System One.... in the equipment list in your profile. Often called PRS1.

Or do you have this one?



That's the "legacy" REMstar.

2) Do you know how to disassemble the water tank? A fair number of people never realize the clear plastic tank can be taken apart to let you clean inside it.

You can disassemble the PRS1 water tank, and the legacy REMstar tank as well. Both can be cleaned in the dishwasher.

On the legacy REMstar tank, you need to be sure to firmly seat the aluminum bottom piece back into the bottom of the plastic tank or it will leak. After you take it apart and reassemble it, fill it with water and check it for leaks before putting it back on the machine. Be sure to push the aluminum piece all the way back in.

On the PRS1 tank, the tank is made from two plastic pieces that come apart.

3) Take it apart, put it in the dishwasher with the hottest, longest cycle your dishwasher will do. It's dishwasher safe. https://www.cpap.com/productpage/respir ... ifier.html I've been dishwashing my tanks for around 7 years now. Both legacy REMstar and PRS1 tanks.

4) I recommend you get a spare tank. You may need one at some time anyway. Most insurance will pay for a new tank every six months or so. They're cheap anyway from cpap.com or other online suppliers.

5) The pink can be some sort of bacteria, mold, fungus, or it can be from iron in the water.

Do you use distilled water? Tap water does increase the problems of bacteria or mineral deposits.

If you use tap water, it will help if you empty the tank every day instead of topping the water off as it evaporates. Topping it off concentrates minerals, nutrients, and bacteria in the water.

6) To keep bacteria and stuff from growing in my tank, I dishwash once a week, sit the clean tank aside to dry out for a week or so and use my spare tank for the next week.

[ciounoi]

Thank you everyone for the replies! I am currently soaking it in vinegar and water, hopefully that will do the trick.

Archangle, to answer your questions:

1) I have the legacy version of the tank.
2) I didn't realize I could take it apart! We're going to try that later on.

I am also looking into getting a spare tank.

[archangle]

Thank you everyone for the replies! I am currently soaking it in vinegar and water, hopefully that will do the trick.

Archangle, to answer your questions:

1) I have the legacy version of the tank.
2) I didn't realize I could take it apart! We're going to try that later on.

I am also looking into getting a spare tank.

There are two versions of the legacy water tank. You'll get the newer one which has a different "anti-flowback" system than the old version. If this isn't the version you had before, there's a slightly different plastic coupling where it fits into the blower unit. It will come with all the parts you need, you just need to figure out to take out the old plastic piece and use the new one. It's not that complicated once you realize what you have to do. Don't lose the part you remove, you'll need it to use the old tank.

Depending on the age of your humidifier, you may already have the new version.

I strongly recommend getting a new tank. They're only $20 or so right now, and it might not be available so cheap later as the old units get more and more "obsolete."

One problem with the new version of the tank is that "auto on" will no longer work.

One further warning, the aluminum plate has some tacky silicone stuff where it slides into the plastic piece. This is the seal. Don't decide it's some sort of nasty deposit and scrub it off when you disassemble the tank.